An announcement from Antarcti.ca Systems Inc. (ASI) describes the development of 'Visual Net' visualization technology which uses mapping software to "act as a front end to the Universal Description, Discovery and Integration (UDDI) Registry. The UDDI Business Registry is a global, public, online directory that gives businesses a uniform way to describe their services, discover other companies' services, and understand the methods necessary to conduct e-business with a particular company. Visual Net places the UDDI Business Registry data on large-scale maps utilizing a superior navigation system and information-rich visuals to enable users to find information on businesses." The UDDI Registry Map under development will feature (1) "A visual map displaying categories of information enabling users to browse through all the data and drill down into those areas of interest; (2) The ability to search the database using classification taxonomies such as the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) and the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code from the same interface; (3) An intuitive display that instantly and visually shows the user valuable information about data in the Registry such as how wide-ranging the services of a business are and provides a relevancy scale of the data for the user."

From the announcement:

The technique behind the effective use of Visual Net for UDDI is the S.O.S. methodology -- Strategize, Organize, and Search. The visual mapping approach enables users to strategize how to sift through massive amounts of data by instantly receiving information about that data or metadata through visual cues, organize their approach in the most effective manner through the product's usability features, and search for the specific data needed.

"Our commitment to the UDDI community is to continually enhance the Registry usability, enabling users to receive maximum value," said Christopher Kurt, Program Manager for UDDI and Web Services at Microsoft Corp. "We consider Visual Net's exceptional visual approach to creating easy, quick access to information to be a great example of innovative value-added services layered on top of the UDDI Business Registry."

"A countless number of businesses worldwide will benefit from this initiative," added Kurt. "Visual Net will help UDDI Business Registry users visually navigate the large amounts of business information available to find exactly what they are looking for, and plays a part in further establishing the registry as the cornerstone of Web services architecture."

"Web services are central to the next generation of enterprise computing, but they're useless without a way to find them - like phone numbers without a phonebook or computer files without names. UDDI is an open, neutral, well-designed solution for this problem," said Tim Bray, ASI founder and CEO. "Visual Net provides the user an interface that's going to make these vast, rich data pools usable for the non-specialist. As co-inventor of XML and ardent advocate for visual mapping, I'm delighted at UDDI's arrival on the scene."